This song means a lot to me because when I first
heard it (when I was 10) I could really relate to it. I've listened to it
a million times since and still don't get tired of it.
Was purchasing a
train ticket from the automated dispenser in the station when an
elderly woman came up to me. She was probably Russian, maybe 50 years
old or so, about five feet tall and rather stout, swaying from side to
side as she hobbled along with the help of a cane, her motions
resembling that of a child's doll with a huge rounded base where the
legs ought to be. Her head was covered in a shawl and she was bundled
in several layers of thin clothing in this bitter weather whilst most
everyone else, oblivious to her presence, were decked out in much
warmer apparel.
She
jingled the two coins in her plastic cup only once before pleading for
several seconds in her foreign tongue, relaying the story of
her hardships, trying to justify to this stranger that any contribution
on my part was well deserved. But all that was not necessary. Her tone
mirrored the sense of desperation so painfully evident in her eyes of
green that I had to look away. I was already searching for loose change.
I
managed to fish out a two euro coin and dropped it in her cup and the
gesture appeared to have astounded her. Her gratitude was so clear and
distinct that I felt ashamed for not offering more. She mumbled a few
words of prayer whilst gesturing the sign of the holy cross before
reaching for my ungloved right hand and planting a soft kiss on it.
This time the astonishment was mine.
So despite whatever it is we're going through, we would do well to
remember that in the grand scheme of things, for the most part, we got
it good. I'm a lucky man and I love how this song reminds me of that.
The song means a lot to me as I feel it describes me perfectly. It's
sometimes hard to explain me to people sometimes, because I am a number
of paradoxes, and this song illustrated that perfectly! :)
You told me that hard times come and hard times go.
And I told you there was a train coming carrying gypsies and gamblers.
I thought I was a fan.
Then you introduced me
To this song on this night.
And it was magic.
And I became a new fan, awash with emotion
over how powerful the performance can be.
Thank you for being the type of fan who shares.
Thank you for being the type of friend who cares.
Lyrics
When I lost you honey sometimes I think I lost my guts too
And I wish God would send me a word
send me something I'm afraid to lose
Lying in the heat of the night like prisoners all our lives
I get shivers down my spine and all I wanna do is hold you tight
CHORUS
I swear I'll drive all night just to buy you some shoes
And to taste your tender charms
And I just wanna sleep tonight again in your arms
Tonight there's fallen angels and they're waiting for us down in the street
Tonight there's calling strangers,
hear them crying in defeat.
Let them go, let them go, let them go,
do their dances of the dead (let'em go right ahead)
You just dry your eyes girl, and c'mon c'mon
c'mon let's go to bed, baby, baby, baby
CHORUS
There's machines and there's fire waiting on the edge of town
They're out there for hire but baby they can't hurt us now
Cause you've got, you've got, you've got,
you've got my love, you've got my love
Through the wind, through the rain, the snow, the wind, the rain
You've got, you've got my, my love
heart and soul
Dave Mattthews Band has and always will be my favourite band and this song is my favourite song from them. I'd go as far as to say it is my favourite song ever. The video is very thought provoking too and touching.
For me, as a hopeless romantic, the song is first about love, true love that breathes and hurts and heals. It is about the challenges we face in personal relationships, all personal relationships, the relationships that make our lives worth living. It is about holding on to something when it seems like everything is falling apart, just when it seems like it's not worth holding onto anymore. It is personal for me too, this song helped me through a very difficult time in a relationship I now know I could never live without. Women and men are difficult creatures...we never really know what we want...relationships are difficult because we are often never truly honest with each other. We hide, lie and hurt because it's easier than letting ourselves enter fully into a bond that renders us defenseless...when another person can bring us to our knees. But the rewards of that cycle of breathing and hurting and healing are tremendous and necessary.
I think about how wicked we truly are as humans, when we are selfish and hurt our loved ones. When we throw our old parents to the curb and forget to visit, when we do not support the friend who truly needs us, when we fail to make time to understand our children, when we are not appreciative of our spouses, when we turn a blind eye to anyone in need because we are too busy.
And then I think about how wicked we are to our planet and the World we live in, pollution and hatred, we live in a time of excess and don't often stop to think of those who have nothing...we destroy our environment and abuse our resources not thinking about the future generations to come. We are wicked to have prejudice without reason and to hate what we do not know. We are wicked and we lie...we think about ourselves when what we should be doing is trying to become selfless and realize that we are so insignificant in the wider scheme of things. We lie to ourselves because it is easier to pretend that everything is fine, it is safer in the pockets we have created, where we hide form the truth...that we all could do with a change, that we all need to find in us that love for ourselves and everything around us that will help us to be better people.
If we come to the realization that it is all just The Space Between, the spaces we can fill if we really want to...with love, understanding, appreciation, care, attention...that space is empty and lonely and needs to be filled. If we examine our own lives, I am sure we can all find a space we may be hiding in or hiding from that we need to fill, a gap we need to bridge...one line says 'Take my hand 'cause we're walking out of here, oh right out of here, love is all we need here' I know it sounds simple, but if we were to truly love we would be able to easily fill that space between...
@girltrueheart Reason to Believe (Bullet Mic version, Magic tour 2007) by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band
Because quite simply, we all need a reason to believe.
This world is so cruel, yet so beautiful.
This world is painful, yet full of joy.
This world is full of despair, yet hope springs eternal.
Bruce shows us just because we've got the blues, there's no reason why we can't rock.
This is for the people who remind me I need a reason.
And this is for anyone who needs a reason.
To Believe.
Lyrics
Seen a man standin' over a dead dog lyin' by the highway in a ditch
He's lookin' down kinda puzzled pokin' that dog with a stick
Got his car door flung open he's standin' out on highway 31
Like if he stood there long enough that dog'd get up and run
Struck me kinda funny seem kinda funny sir to me
Still at the end of every hard earned day people find some reason to believe
Now Mary Lou loved Johnny with a love mean and true
She said "Baby I'll work for you every day and bring my money home to you"
One day he up and left her and ever since that
She waits down at the end of that dirt road for young Johnny to come back
Struck me kinda funny seemed kind of funny sir to me
How at the end of every hard earned day people find some reason to believe
Take a baby to the river Kyle William they called him
Wash the baby in the water take away little Kyle's sin
In a whitewash shotgun shack an old man passes away take his body to the graveyard and over him they pray Lord won't you tell us
tell us what does it mean
Still at the end of every hard earned day people find some reason to believe
Congregation gathers down by the riverside
Preacher stands with his Bible groom stands waitin' for his bride
Congregation gone and the sun sets behind a weepin' willow tree
Groom stands alone and watches the river rush on so effortlessly
Wonderin' where can his baby be still at the end of every hard earned day people find some reason to believe
I love music. All forms of music... most forms of music, but I am first and foremost a Trini. I love calypso in all its forms, but it disappoints me that it never went further.
When I ask people what, in their view is the best calypso of all time, "calypso music" by David Rudder is the automatic answer. Without a doubt, Calypso Music is a great calypso, but in my view a solid #2... when I tell people what my favourite Calypso is... the majority have never heard it... and that is sad... and one of the reasons why i think that calypso has not had the impact that reggae has.
When you say Sparrow, most people think of Jean and Dinah, or one of his more raunchy offerings, or maybe even 10 to 1 is murder. Very few think of this classic.
I first heard it when I was 10, and it was already an old Calypso, but it resonated with me then, as it does today. To me it represents a road that Calypso could have gone down to greatness, but never did...
Apart from all that, it gives a poignant description of the life of one of my ancestral traits
So I present for your consideration... "Slave" by the Mighty Sparrow
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